We should all be wary of almost everything career politicians tell us. But when certain words come out of our elected officials’ mouths, I really want to dry heave. Here are 15 overused bureaucratic terms and their politically-mutated definitions.

“Compassion”

A term used by free-spending liberals who want to give your hard-earned money to their constituents.

“Radical”

A volatile, mud-slinging term that means absolutely nothing and is used to whip up the emotions of the ignorant electorate.

“Mean Spirited”

A generic term used by the left to define anybody to the right of them.

“UnAmerican”

A generic term used by the right to define anybody to the left of them.

“Carbon Footprint”

Self-righteous lefties repeat this to sound important instead of simply saying “pollution.”

“Fairness”

The belief that nobody should have more than anybody else, regardless of work ethic or skill sets.

I TRY TO BE AN INFORMED VOTER. I would rather not vote at all than vote for a political candidate whose character I am un or misinformed on. I wouldn’t even vote for a family member if I didn’t think they would be my best representative as a public servant. I want to know exactly what candidates who ask for my vote stand for, know enough about their character & background to trust their judgment in making decisions that will affect my life for a long time to come.

I cannot for the life of me get my mind around the “professional” background of assessor candidate Jeffrey Prang to understand it. I understand that Prang’s position as 2nd Assistant City Manager in Pico Rivera was created for him as a personal & political favor by then Mayor Chuck Fuentes even though Prang possessed no direct experience as a city manager & City Councilman David Armenta…

I TRY TO BE AN INFORMED VOTER. I would rather not vote at all than vote for a political candidate whose character I am un or misinformed on. I wouldn’t even vote for a family member if I didn’t think they would be my best representative as a public servant. I want to know exactly what candidates who ask for my vote stand for, know enough about their character & background to trust their judgment in making decisions that will affect my life for a long time to come.

I cannot for the life of me get my mind around the “professional” background of assessor candidate Jeffrey Prang to understand it. I understand that Prang’s position as 2nd Assistant City Manager in Pico Rivera was created for him as a personal & political favor by then Mayor Chuck Fuentes even though Prang possessed no direct experience as a city manager & City Councilman David Armenta said there was no need for another city manager. Prang was one of those city managers who was subsequently investigated for the misuse/abuse of Pico Rivera city credit cards. Pico Rivera City Councilman David Armenta also told a local news source that he suspected both Chuck Fuentes & Jeffrey Prang of misusing city funds to pay for meals for family members & others in an inappropriate way. I also understand that Prang denied these charges , saying they were politically motivated & that they were eventually excused. At the time of this investigation, former Pico Rivera Ron Bielke is quoted as saying “Pico Rivera is a political cesspool!” I’m not familiar with the circumstances of Mr. Prang’s dismissal from his managerial post in Pico Rivera City Hall., but I do know he moved on to another job as a “special assistant” in the administration of his long time friend Sheriff Lee Baca, another fluff job I understand was also allegedly created for him as a political & personal favor, ostensibly at taxpayer’s expense. Sheriff Lee Baca himself resigned as head of the Sheriff’s Dept. recently under a dark cloud of suspected corruption on his watch. It’s never been clear to my what Prang’s “special assistant” duties were there or how relevant they were, but the position was eventually eliminated & so was Jeffrey Prang. Prang’s current job also has dubious overtones & is also purported to be a “special assistant” position, once again, created for him by his long time friend, the disgraced John Noguez, who has been released on bail from jail pending his trial on more than 24 counts of corruption while performing his job as tax assessor, having traded lower tax assessments for contributions to his personal campaign coffers. Prang’s intro into the 2014 assessor’s race started out on shaky legs to me, since the job title he chose for the ballot was disallowed by a judge after legal action was taken, since the assessor’s office does not use “Deputy Assessor” as a job title because there is no such thing. As I see it, using a false job title to run for public office is not only misleading, it is fraudulent. As far as I can tell, Prang had no responsibilities as a county assessor in any way, shape or form & any pretense as such is easily discounted by reliable sources. As far as Mr. Prang’s contention that he had “no inkling” of the corruption charges that were brewing in Noguez’s office before taking the job there, that does not pass the smell test for me. There was plenty of publicity on this investigation beforehand & a former West Hollywood city official wrote in the “comments” section of a local blog: “Prang was desperate for employment & leveraged his friendship with Noguez, the highest openly gay elected official in L.A, County, to have a job created for him.” In fact Prang defended Noguez & tried to convince others that the charges were politically motivated. The rest of this story is ongoing.

Based on the foregoing & other allegations, also including sexual harassment charges against Prang that cost the city of West Hollywood big settlement bucks & Prang’s withdrawal at one time for a state Assembly race, apparently in deferment to a long time friend who he felt “had a better chance of winning”, I can find no redeeming qualities in this candidate for an office that demands integrity honesty & especially trust with the public coffers. I don’t know Jeffrey Prang well & I cannot say for sure that he does not possess those qualities. But I can say for sure I would rather be safe than sorry. That’s why I am voting for John Morris for L.A. County Tax Assessor. John has a long history of public service, promoting public safety & fighting corruption that affects many areas of our every day lives. That’s why I think he is the best choice to clean up this important county office that is, as a whole, perceived as inherently corrupt. For me there is no contest.

Ex-shelter worker comes forward with some serious allegations regarding the San Bernardino City animal shelter. This worker states that, “Dogs were hung by leashes” and that “animals were given a third of the required euthanization drugs and suffered a slow death.” This worker goes on to say that, “animals were kicked and punched; animals were and are killed under the guise of being sick, when they were or are actually healthy and adoptable. At least one member of staff involved in this abuse is thought to be still working at the shelter.” This same worker also stated that, “the RVT…

It seems that “Prince” Frederic Von Anhalt is officially on the ballot running for Governor of California. I’m glad he’s not running for the West Hollywood City Council, as it is already top-heavy with queens. After the prince unvieled his “Prince Frederic For Governor” billboard on Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, I knew he was too old to replace Angeline the local Billboard Queen, and thought it was just another quick little publicity campaign and that he would hasten to move on to something else once the little media hubbub died down. But it seems he has filed and will be campaigning for the Governor of California along with the more legitimate slate of candidates. That being said, I am annoyed by this publicity hound’s constant exposure in the various media, including a lengthy segment on Countdown With Keith Olbermann on MSNBC and a few seconds on CNN with Wolfe Blitzer. With all of the important local, country & world events, why the major cable channels waste time on this mess is beyond my comprehension.

I suppose that a little petty sensationalism is good for tv ratings, but I also believe that most people are wise to this publicity trickster’s antics and take him as seriously as they do Zsa Zsa’s acting. The Prince, a former masseur, born Hans Robert (or Hans Georg) Lichtenberg in Germany nearly 70 years ago, allegedly bought his title of “Prince” from a bankrupt German princess in a business transaction. The real Von Anhalt family, according to on- line informational sources, has never recognized Von Anhalt as a part of their lineage or that he is officially or otherwise entitled to any royal title. According to the same sources, Mr. Von Anhalt along with Zsa Zsa, has been in the business of adopting men for at least a million $ and bestowing upon them the title of “Prince”. I say if there was ever a royal mockery, this is it. In my observation, Mr.Von Anhalt cheapens the word cheap. He claimed to be the father of Anna Nicole Smith’s baby, until paternity tests proved otherwise, claimed to have been robbed by 3 female assailants of his clothing & other belongings, and left chained nude to the steering wheel of his Roll Royce somewhere in the deep recesses of Bel Air. Not only was the credibility of his tale questioned, it was so ludicrous that people quickly moved on from even having any “fun” with his story and it’s accompanying jokes. It is stated in “Wikapedia” that Zsa Zsa’s former publicist told “Inside Edition” that the actress’ husband is a “chronic fabricator”, and I presume he was stating it tactfully.

It will be intersting to see just how much publicity the prince generates from this latest publicity misadventure and just how much time & attention is given him by the local, national, and presumably even international media. Hopefully they will be merciful and spare us the details, but only the ensuing gubernatorial campaign will tell.

I have found this to be a very strange man, unprincely, to say the least, and somewhat devoid of princely duties. He claims to be very busy, but nearly every day, for a long time, he has sat at a sidewalk table at a coffe house in West Hollywood, alone, occassionally chatting with passers-by, but mostly chewing on a big cigar that you can smell for blocks and staring unflinc

Taken in West Hollywood, California

hingly into space. Judging from circumstances, I would guess that he is an unfulfilled & lonely man, doesn’t have many friends and probably doesn’t get invited to many social functions or events. It would seem to me that most people of any social status would be embarassed to be seen in the presence of such a character and would not want to degrade their own status by associating with a fake prince who many believe to be a hopeless social climber, willing to make as much a fool of himself as is required in order to gain attention. I once saw him at The Ivy, a celebrity-type restaurant on Robertson Blvd. with a huge unlit cigar in his mouth and a white napkin over his head, a princely picture indeed.

Since I see the prince almost daily in my neighborhood, I have long been tired of him, and somehow get the creeps just passing him by. He always makes sure he parks his Rolls Royce in a prominent spot in front of the coffee shop for all to see, even though, by now, everyone knows who he is, that he drives the lavender-ish late model Rolls and that he is married to Zsa Zsa Gabor. Unfortunately for my neighborhood, it seems the attention of being Zsa Zsa’s husband has long worn off and the prince continues his insatiable quest for new sources of publicity. Why he chooses to park his Rolls Royce and himself in such an unlikely neighborhood in West Hollywood is beyond my (and anyone else I know) comprehension. Perhaps it’s a publicity stunt that hasn’t yet climaxed.